Oh, and Rorschach was my favorite as well. It was just so fascinating how you could both love him and be repulsed by your own admiration.

Or, if we could represent this as an allegorical conversation between Alan Moore and Superhero comic fandom in general…

Fandom: “Man, superheroes are cool.”
Alan Moore: “You know, in real life, most superheroes would be considered sociopathic maniacs.”
Fandom: “Superheroes… are sociopaths?”
Alan Moore: “Yes.”
Fandom: “That means sociopaths are *cool*!”
Alan Moore: *sighs*

Thanks for giving me such a huge laugh today, Meagen. I agree with Ann Bruce, though; the idea of Moore daring to interact with fandom? Perish the thought! He’s the Yeti of Nottingham.

When people ask me why I like graphic novels like the Watchmen, Sin City, and Wanted, I always ask them if they prefer Superman the biggest boy scout of ‘em all or Batman who, frankly, was a little psychotic even before Frank Miller wrote The Dark Knight Returns.

For me, the appeal of The Watchmen was Moore's message that if superheroes were real, they'd be fucked up.

Which only inspired comic book writers to create increasingly anti-heroic storylines in the attempt to keep things “realistic” and “gritty”.

Or, if we could represent this as an allegorical conversation between Alan Moore and Superhero comic fandom in general…

Fandom: “Man, superheroes are cool.”
Alan Moore: “You know, in real life, most superheroes would be considered sociopathic maniacs.”
Fandom: “Superheroes… are sociopaths?”
Alan Moore: “Yes.”
Fandom: “That means sociopaths are *cool*!”
Alan Moore: *sighs*

I thought the ending was…hm…great. Horrific. Shocking. Inevitable. Complex and multi-faceted. It’s hard to be pleased with the way things went down. So shocking! So appalling! And yet…look at the end result? Was it worth it? Possibly. But again…that’s where the ambiguity comes into play…and the theme of human nature. Most of the characters, with the exception of Rorschach, I think, saw the world in shades of gray. He alone seemed the most black-and-white of them…the most locked into absolutes. How interesting, then — ironic, really — that when all is said and done, at the very end, it’s his black-and-white moralism that may be the undoing of the hard-won peace. Because human nature being what it is, we can’t really tolerate peace. We have to have something to complain about…to get all riles up about…to voice our discontent over…

I’m not sure I’m culturally or historically literate enough to catch all the references. It’s densely packed! Whoa. I’d love to watch it again — or rather, read the book now — to see what else I can notice.

Fascinating, I thought. Intriguing and layered and psychological.

Oh, and loved Dr. Manhatten’s blue wang in the movie. One of my my favorite parts!! What a nice treat for a rainy Saturday afternoon.

I do agree with Jaiku about the wishy-washyness of the Silk Spectre II — and I still can’t decide if Moore did it on purpose or not.

I’d argue that it was the first book to show costumed crime-fighters dealing with everyday life, though. Spider-Man did that. It’s just this is the first time the characters are dealing with real life and don’t have any special powers. Yet they choose to put on the tights and the mask anyhow, and try to save the world. They know it’s terribly messed up, but they feel compelled to anyhow. That to me is the compelling bit, and the part most nicely illuminated by the pirate comic book the kid is reading in the graphic novel version.

Rorschach was definitely the best character, but my favorite aspect of the book were the varied subplots. I thought they really rounded out the book and added depth.

People don’t get what the groundbreaking work meant at the time and so they judge it after having been exposed to hundreds of other works that used it’s innovations.

I know everyone goes on and on about how it hadn’t been done before, etc. It’s REVOLUTIONARY! Doesn’t make it a good book, however, or something people should necessarily read.

Interesting to see Denny Duquette and Papa Winchester in a verrrrry different kind of role. I wanted to kill the Comedian myself!

My big “huh?” was in finding out that Night Owl II was actually played by the guy who played Raoul in Phantom. That stunned me–he was so handsome in Phantom, so unbelievably wishy-washy and average in Watchman. (Until he put on the costume!)

Felt more like a big
Character study than epic
Heroic saga

Because that’s what Watchmen is. A giant character study. When it was published twenty-odd years ago, it was such an innovative concept that it caused a revolution in the international comic industry. The impact is similar to the one that Robin Schone’s debut has had on the romance genre, giving birth to a new sub-genre: romantica (or erotic romance it’s called now?).

Watchmen does have flaws, but what an innovative novel or film hasn’t? It’s because of Watchmen, we see many comics, graphic novels and film adaptations with flawed superheroes and anti-heroes nowadays. Comparing with these graphic novels today, Watchmen doesn’t seem that special or interesting. And it isn’t.

Silk Spectre II? Only
Girl and romantic interest
She's wishy-washy

There have been many debates about Alan Moore and his female characters. He has a complicated view of women and it shows in his works. I rolled my eyes at his portrayals so many times that I ban my eyeballs from rolling again when I read a Moore. ::laugh::

I can’t say it’s not boring, because to today’s audience it likely is. But be aware of why there’s hype before going into it.